1993–94 Denver Nuggets season

The 1993–94 Denver Nuggets season was the 18th season for the Denver Nuggets in the National Basketball Association, and their 27th season as a franchise. The Nuggets received the ninth overall pick in the 1993 NBA draft, and selected power forward Rodney Rogers out of Wake Forest University. During the off-season, the team acquired Brian Williams from the Orlando Magic, then during the first month of the regular season, they traded Mark Macon and Marcus Liberty to the Detroit Pistons in exchange for All-Star guard Alvin Robertson; however, Robertson never played for the Nuggets due to a back injury, and was out for the entire season.

With the addition of Rogers and Brian Williams, the Nuggets played around .500 in winning percentage all season long; the team got off to a 9–8 start to the regular season, but then posted a five-game losing streak in December afterwards. The team then posted a five-game winning streak also in December, and later on held a 22–25 record at the All-Star break. The Nuggets won five of their final seven games of the season, and finished in fourth place in the Midwest Division with a 42–40 record, earning the eighth seed in the Western Conference, and qualifying for the NBA playoffs for the first time since the 1989–90 season.

Last season's Most Improved Player Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf averaged 18.0 points and 4.5 assists per game, while second-year star LaPhonso Ellis averaged 15.4 points and 8.6 rebounds per game, and Dikembe Mutombo provided the team with 12.0 points, 11.8 rebounds and 4.1 blocks per game. In addition, Reggie Williams provided with 13.0 points and 1.4 steals per game, and second-year guard Bryant Stith contributed 12.5 points and 1.4 steals per game. Off the bench, Robert Pack provided with 9.6 points and 5.4 assists per game, while Rogers contributed 8.1 points per game, and Brian Williams averaged 8.0 points and 5.6 rebounds per game.

During the NBA All-Star weekend at the Target Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Pack participated in the NBA Slam Dunk Contest. Mutombo finished in third place in Defensive Player of the Year voting, while Brian Williams finished tied in seventh place in Most Improved Player voting.

In the Western Conference First Round of the 1994 NBA playoffs, the Nuggets faced off against the top–seeded, and Pacific Division champion Seattle SuperSonics, who were led by the All-Star trio of Shawn Kemp, Gary Payton and Detlef Schrempf. The Nuggets lost the first two games to the SuperSonics on the road at the Seattle Center Coliseum, but managed to win the next two games at home, which included a Game 4 win over the SuperSonics at the McNichols Sports Arena in overtime, 94–85 to even the series. The Nuggets won Game 5 over the SuperSonics at the Seattle Center Coliseum in overtime, 98–94 to win in a hard-fought five-game series, and became the first 8th-seeded team to beat a #1 seed; an on-court camera featured Mutombo, in jubilation on his back holding the ball after the buzzer.

In the Western Conference Semi-finals, the team faced off against the 5th–seeded Utah Jazz, who were led by the trio of All-Star forward Karl Malone, All-Star guard John Stockton, and Jeff Hornacek. The Nuggets lost the first three games as the Jazz took a 3–0 series lead. Despite the threat of elimination, the Nuggets managed to win the next three games, including a Game 6 win over the Jazz at the McNichols Sports Arena, 94–91 to even the series. However, the Nuggets lost Game 7 to the Jazz on the road, 91–81 at the Delta Center, thus losing in a hard-fought seven-game series.

The Nuggets finished eleventh in the NBA in home-game attendance, with an attendance of 673,738 at the McNichols Sports Arena during the regular season. Following the season, Robertson was released to free agency. For the season, the Nuggets revealed a new primary logo of a snowcapped mountain over the team name in gold, and changed their uniforms adding dark navy blue, gold and dark red to their color scheme. The team's new primary logo, and new uniforms would both remain in use until 2003, while the basic design of the logo would last until 2018.